1. How careful was I when I took my way,
2. Each trifle under truest bars to thrust,
3. That to my use it might unused stay
4. From hands of falsehood, in sure wards of trust!
5. But thou, to whom my jewels trifles are,
6. Most worthy comfort, now my greatest grief,
7. Thou best of dearest, and mine only care,
8. Art left the prey of every vulgar thief.
9. Thee have I not lock'd up in any chest,
10. Save where thou art not, though I feel thou art,
11. Within the gentle closure of my breast,
12. From whence at pleasure thou mayst come and part;
13. And even thence thou wilt be stol'n I fear,
14., For truth proves thievish for a prize so dear.

The poet now begins
to agonise once more over the
vulnerability of himself and the youth. While he is away, every passer
by
might be tempted by the youth’s beauty to steal him away from the
poet’s
heart. Though he has taken great care to protect his possessions, he
cannot
do the same for the one possession that is dearer to him than all other
- the youth whom he loves.

The youth’s beauty is
sufficient to tempt
even the saintliest person to theft. The sense of helplessness grows as
the poem proceeds, and it is augmented by the following sonnets: 49,
which
deals with the ultimate loss of love; 50 and 51, which describe a
necessary
journey away from the beloved, and the agonies which ensue.

THE 1609 QUARTO VERSION

48

H

Ow careful was I when I
tooke
my way,
Each trifle vnder trueſt barres to thruſt,

3.
That to my use = So that it (they) might
be available to me for future use. it might unused stay - i.e. not taken and used
by others; stay/
From hands etc.
- remain far away from

4.
From hands of falsehood,
in sure wards of trust!

4.
hands of falsehood - thieving hands,
untrustworthy
persons; sure wards of trust = secure storage
places. wards
is suggestive not only of guardianship and prisons, but also the wards
of
a lock, the gates which allow only the correct key to be inserted.

5.
But thou, to whom my jewels
trifles are,

5. to whom
= in comparison with whom. Jewel
was often used by Shakespeare as a term of endearment
for a lover (or
a potential lover), as in MW.III.3.36-7.

Have I
caught thee, my heavenly jewel? Why now
let me die, for I have lived long enough

6.
Most worthy comfort, now
my greatest grief,

6.
Most worthy comfort - two probable meanings:
you who are my greatest and most valuable source of joy and pleasure;
you
who are most deserving of comfort and joy. now mygreatest grief - my
greatest source of grief (because
of the danger you are in of being stolen from me).

7. Thou best of dearest,
and
mine only care,

7.
Thou best of dearest = You, who are the
best of all things that are dear to me. See also 39:
When thou art all the better part of me and
the
note thereon. care
= source of concern or grief. From Latin carus =
dear, precious.
Note also the echo of careful in line 1.

8. Art left the prey of
every
vulgar thief.

8.
You are abandoned as a potential target for every
common thief. Vulgar was usually associated with
the mob and the
lower classes. See Sonn38,
line 4 and the note.

9. Thee have I not lock'd
up
in any chest,

9.
I have not locked you up in any chest. chest
= box or coffer for storage of valuables; or breast, bosom, heart.

10. Save where thou art
not,
though I feel thou art,

10.
Save = except. where thou art not = where you are not
physically present.

11.
Within the gentle closure
of my breast,

11. closure
= enclosure. The word suggests
an enfolding within one’s arms. Shakespeare uses it four times, the
same phrase being employed in VA 781-2

Lest the
deceiving harmony should run
Into the quiet closure of my breast;

12. From whence at
pleasure
thou mayst come and part;

12.
From whence - from which part (my breast);
at pleasure thou mayst come and part = you may
come and go as it
pleases you. part = depart.

13. And even thence thou
wilt
be stol'n I fear,

13.
even thence = even from there, from that
safe place.

14, For truth proves
thievish
for a prize so dear.

14.
truth - truth itself; those who are
essentially
truthful and honest; proves = turns out to be, is
found to be; dear = valuable, desirable, cherished.